8th Grade Unit 5 Plate Tectonics Vocabulary

Front

What is Pangaea?

Back

A supercontinent that existed about 200 million years ago before breaking apart.

Front

What is the lithosphere?

Back

The rigid outer layer of Earth, consisting of the crust and upper mantle.

Front

What are transform boundaries?

Back

Plate boundaries where the plates are moving past each other in different directions.

Front

What are divergent boundaries?

Back

Plate boundaries where the plates are moving apart.

Front

Who is Harry Hess?

Back

An American geologist who confirmed Wegener’s ideas of continental drift by using the evidence of seafloor spreading.

Front

What is the asthenosphere?

Back

The semi-fluid layer of the upper mantle beneath the lithosphere that allows for the movement of tectonic plates.

Front

What are convergent boundaries?

Back

Plate boundaries where two plates collide, often forming mountains or causing earthquakes.

Front

What is sea floor spreading?

Back

The process by which new oceanic crust is formed at mid-ocean ridges and older crust is pushed away.

Front

What is continental drift?

Back

The theory that continents have moved over geological time and were once joined together.

Front

What is a rift valley?

Back

A lowland region formed by the divergence of tectonic plates, often associated with volcanic activity.